Fuel gauge

[pullinmyhairout]

Hey guys.Just bought a 97 Taurus GL.Fuel gauge doesn't work, and I know very little about electrical probs.Any help would be appreciated, thanks.

[shorod]

You'll need to determine whether your problem is at the instrument cluster, at the fuel sending unit, or with the wiring in between.

Do all other guages work? Does the low fuel light work?

When you mention that you know very little about electrical problems, does that mean you know very little about troubleshooting them and how to use common test equipment for electrical problems, such as a Digital MultiMeter (DMM)? I'm just trying to guage how much I need to type here (don't want to wear my fingers out if I don't need to).

I can send you a PDF version of the wiring diagram for the fuel guage circuit if you think that would help you. If you'd appreciate that, send me a Private Message with an e-mail address for you that can accept PDF attachments.

-Rod

[pullinmyhairout]

Fuel gauge moves from empty to full,just not accurate. It might read empty when you fill the tank.Miles to Empty readout displays, but isn't accurate.Temp gauge seems to be working.My experience with a test light is limited.Sorry about your fingers,but I appreciate the help.

[shorod]

Originally Posted by pullinmyhairout

Fuel gauge moves from empty to full,just not accurate. It might read empty when you fill the tank.Miles to Empty readout displays, but isn't accurate.Temp gauge seems to be working.My experience with a test light is limited.Sorry about your fingers,but I appreciate the help.

So it's not just that the scale seems off (reads empty, but there's still about 5 gallons left in the tank), but rather the readings are sporatic?

It would be a pain in the butt, but you could pull the dash and run a wire out where you can get on it with a DMM and monitor the voltage when you're driving and compare it with the guage reading.

Or, you could pull the wiring to the sending unit in the fuel tank and put a variable resistor/potentiometer in there and slowly turn it, looking to see if the guage is responding accurately.

-Rod

[pullinmyhairout]

Sorry, not explaining this well.Guage reads either full or empty.

[shorod]

Originally Posted by pullinmyhairout

Sorry, not explaining this well.Guage reads either full or empty.

When the fuel guage reads empty, is the low fuel light on?

Since you mention the "Distance to empty" indicator, you must have the flexible fuel (FFV) version? If so, that's one more electrical component between the sending unit and the guage cluster.

-Rod

[irish30]

You need to have the fuel pump removed and test the resistance of the reostat on the fuel float. If there is an open in the circuit it will cause inaccurate readings. If the circuit is good at the top portion you get a full reading, as sson as it drops to level that the short is you read empty.